The Australian Golf Course Superintendents Association has recently taken delivery of the Greenstester device which is used to perform The R&A s Holing Out test. AGCSA Tech senior agronomist Andrew Peart has this week been putting the Greenstester device through its paces at a number of golf clubs around Melbourne s sandbelt which were part of the AGCSA s year-long Horticulture Australia Ltd-funded golf course benchmarking study. The Greenstester is the preferred device to carry out the Holing Out test which The R&A says gives clubs an easy and affordable way of monitoring the reliability of their putting surfaces throughout the year. Ideally carried out in conjunction with monitoring of firmness and green speed, the Holing Out test has various applications, most notably to assess: Year-round reliability, ideally with weekly assessment to identify issues related to footprinting on overly soft surfaces, disease scarring, grass seed head production, seasonal variation in growth and general wear and tear; The impact of intensive maintenance procedures. The Holing Out test will identify the degree and longevity of disruption to the reliability of putting surfaces from essential maintenance operations; Preparation for important tournaments. The fairness of proposed hole locations can be assessed using an artificial target, such as tee pegs, to indicate the resting position of balls rolled from any set distance Watch Holing Out Test video
Author: AGCSA